The Fourth Outstanding Person of Huangpu Military Academy

Lin Biao, Chief of Staff of the 1st Regiment, spoke.

"Xinwan is intended to shield the Yongxing direction, but tomorrow it will be clear that the superiors' intention is to block any possible support from the Gui 10th Division to the main road. I suggest that the 11th Regiment fight tomorrow with Zishan Village as the center. With Zishan Village as the regimental headquarters, one battalion will be stationed on Shanling Heights. This will be the core force for advancing in the east, north, and west directions. One company will be stationed in front of the village, one company at the mountain stream, and one company and all the battalion's heavy machine guns at the mountain temple. One battalion will be kept in reserve."

Zheng Dongguo: "Chief of Staff Lin's arrangements are generally fine.

Huang Zaixin: “Okay.”

"Command from headquarters, the 2nd Regiment will launch a counterattack tomorrow afternoon. Given our position, if we attack, we'll cut the enemy off!"

On the east side of the main road, the 2nd Regiment of the 1st Division received a telegram.

Wang Erzhuo: "What else is there to say? When the final attack arrives tomorrow, we will be the tigers descending the mountain!"

"Commander, we are facing the 7th Division of Gui. Xia Wei also knew that it would be bad to cut off the waist, so he directly placed a division here.

Wang Erzhuo: "We have more than just one regiment against the Gui 7th Division. Qiu Qingquan's Third Regiment is also in this area. The Third Regiment also brings with it the 2nd Brigade of the 5th Army. Comrades, based on my understanding of Qiu Qingquan, he will take the shortest route between the two points from the Third Regiment's position and head straight down the mountain."

"Should we cooperate with them?

Wang Erzhuo: "No, we're heading straight down the mountain too. Do you think the campsite I chose over the past two days was random?"

"Comrades, comrades, come to life!

The 4th Division of the 2nd Army, the 11th Regiment has now been split up and moved south to cooperate with the 1st Regiment in combat. Xiao Jinguang's division headquarters is leading Su Yu's 10th Regiment and Li Guangshao's 12th Regiment.

Xiao Jinguang: "The 18th Army across from us is quite capable. The military has said they are much stronger than the 8th Army because they haven't been completely wiped out recently and their personnel are stable. We fought them a few days ago. Regardless of their combat quality, their equipment is indeed more sophisticated. After all, they were armed with Zhang Zuolin's weapons.

"The 4th Division is now responsible for cutting off the road from Leiyang to Hengyang and pinning down the two divisions of the 18th Army. We can't let them move freely. According to the command of the headquarters, we will take action tomorrow morning and cut the road.

"Everyone, do you have any specific ideas for tomorrow's battle?" Xiao Jinguang looked at Su Yu: "Su Yu, give me some ideas.

Su Yu, who had seemed to be daydreaming for a few seconds, finally replied: "Division Commander, if we cut off the road from Leiyang to Hengyang, the 18th Army will definitely be tied down. We should find a favorable defensive area to cut off the road.

Xiao Jinguang: "You mean the 18th Army will launch a fierce attack to the north to reopen the highway?

"Commander, Commander, telegram from headquarters!

Du Yuming, commander of the Second Division, took the telegram, quickly read it, and handed it to Chief of Staff Lu Deming: "See if there's anything you need to do. If not, I'll take a nap first--"

Du Yuming fell asleep before he could finish saying "a while".

Du Yuming led the 5th Regiment of the 2nd Division on a forced march yesterday and stopped at 8 pm. After that, they set up camp, settled in, ate, washed their feet, and the soldiers lay down to rest. Du Yuming and the division headquarters team waited until three o'clock in the morning for the telegram from the command center. They really couldn't bear it any longer.

The new orders for the Second Division were virtually identical to yesterday's. The two regiments were to march rapidly to Dishui Mountain and launch a multi-pronged assault on the enemy forces besieging the hilltop, ideally annihilating a portion of them in their entirety. However, the telegram mentioned a full-scale counterattack in other areas of the battlefield.

So Lu Deming read the telegram, handed it to the commander of the 5th Regiment, Song Xilian, and then lay down.

The next day, on the morning of December 15, the people at the 2nd Division Headquarters and the 12th Regiment Headquarters, who had slept for less than three hours, struggled to get up again.

There were still 25 kilometers to go. If they could reach Dishui Mountain by noon, they would be able to launch the planned multi-pronged attack between 1 and 2 p.m. If the Gui troops at Dishui Mountain continued to fiercely attack Yu Chengwan's regiment on the mountain, then the two regiments of the Second Division would be able to smash into the enemy's position, which would be a lot of fun.

In the direction of Chenzhou. On the morning of the 15th, the Guangxi clique continued its offensive.

The vanguard of the 8th Guangxi Division approached the first ridge of Yapoling and found that the Guangdong Communist Army that had originally guarded Tuling had withdrawn. The Guangxi soldiers carefully crossed the first ridge and the Erdaoling position appeared before them.

Erdaoling is higher and steeper than Yidaling, and its fortifications are more stringent.

"Dongdongdongdong--"

Mortars on the ridge unleashed a barrage of propaganda shells, which released leaflets into the air, sending pieces of paper drifting all over the sky.

The propaganda copy written by the First Army's Political Department urged the Gui Army soldiers not to come and die. They were all Chinese, and most of them were civilians. They should not die for Chiang Kai-shek and Li Zongren.

"Commander! The Gui army is still preparing for the attack. They still have to fight! It's just that the attack preparations are a little slow!"

He Long: "Hey. Still want to fight? Are they just going to obey their superiors' orders like this?"

"Reporting to the division commander, yes. The 8th Division of the 37th Army, formerly the 8th Brigade of the 7th Army under Li Mo'an, fought in the Northern Expedition from Hesheng Bridge to Tingsi Bridge, the Battle of Jinpu Road, and up to the present day. It is impossible for them not to have a sense of collective honor.

He Long: "Then you, the 8th Regiment, should also show me some sense of collective honor. We are the 3rd Division of the 1st Army.

"yes!"

He Long: "However, fighting is the same, but we must treat all wounded soldiers equally when rescuing them on the battlefield. No matter which side the soldiers are from, if they are injured and lying on the ground, we must rescue them if we see them. The military has sent an extra team of medical soldiers today, and we have more than enough doctors and medicines.

"yes!"

The 2nd Division of Gui and Wang Yaowu's 9th Regiment, which fought fiercely yesterday, were both carried away: now it is the 8th Division of Gui against the 8th Regiment.

However, the 9th Regiment was actually being carried away for "protective reasons." Chen Tianheng didn't want to injure the 9th Regiment. A unit that suffered heavy casualties in battle, even with additional soldiers and officers, would experience a period of low combat effectiveness due to the loss of so many core soldiers, NCOs, and officers. The old saying, "It takes a hundred days to heal a broken bone," perfectly captures this.

But the 2nd Gui Division on the opposite side... were actually carried away with oxygen tubes connected.

The 8th Gui Division slowly prepared for the attack. As the Gui army's mountain artillery bombarded the main position, the mountain artillery of the 1st and 3rd Divisions also began to fire accurately, disrupting the Gui army's offensive preparations.

After a few rounds of artillery fire, the Gui army's mountain artillery stopped firing. A few minutes later, the Gui army resumed its artillery fire.

This time, their shells hit a small hill next to Yapoling, which was marked as Hill 437 or Unnamed Hill on the First Army's map, not the main position of the defense line.

However, that is where the artillery's forward observation post is located!

The observation and ranging team, communications team, and security team on the mountain quickly responded, with the observers and communications team retreating to the reverse slope of the mountain. At this time, the security team discovered that 300 to 400 Gui troops had turned to Hill 437 and deployed their troops to launch an attack!

The signalman reported the coordinates, and the mountain artillery fired two rounds, with dozens of shells accurately covering the target. Then, the attacking soldiers of the 8th Gui Division spread out further.

The signalman reported the coordinates again and also reported that the enemy formation was now too dispersed and the artillery bombardment might not be effective.

"Evacuate the forward observation post at Hill 437. Please take all supplies and equipment with you when you retreat."

Military artillery commander Yuan Yelie hung up the phone.

"It seems that it will not be easy to carry away the 8th Gui Division today.

The 8th Guangxi Division's exploratory attack on Erdaoling continued until noon. After 12:00, the Guangxi soldiers in groups of three or five launched a real attack in front of Erdaoling.

Li Mo'an: "What? What? Explosive tube?"

"Yes! Commander, some of the attacking Gui soldiers were carrying blasting tubes, similar to the ones we used before!"

Li Mo'an: "Does the attacking Gui army also have combat engineers?"

“This cannot be confirmed at the moment; perhaps it was just an ordinary soldier carrying a blasting tube.

"Confirm it as soon as possible!"

The Gui army also had blasting tubes. These were a powerful tool for dismantling barbed wire. They had threads on both ends, allowing them to be screwed together, one section at a time. Their purpose was to create a long stick over ten meters long, which could be inserted into the barbed wire and detonated, instantly creating a large breach.

Li Mo'an waited quietly at the command post behind the mountain for the first wave of attack to end.

After a fierce battle, the 1st Battalion of the 8th Regiment repelled the attacking Gui army. Although the Gui army's blasting tube destroyed a section of barbed wire, the damage done by the Gui army's artillery to the 1st Battalion's firepower point was too limited. Several heavy machine guns' crossfire sealed the gap in the barbed wire. Seeing no good opportunity to break through, the Gui army retreated to regroup.

The first battalion repaired the barbed wire and trenches, preparing for the next wave of attack.

However, the next wave of attack by the Gui army failed.

At 1 p.m., the troops of the 8th Division of Gui who had come down the mountain took a headcount. After the headcount was completed, all the soldiers, officers, wounded soldiers and corpses were evacuated from the Erdaoling battlefield.

Li Mo'an: "The enemy is in retreat. We should prepare to pursue them."

Chapter 154: Xia Wei is captured

Li Mingrui, commander of the 8th Guangxi Division, gathered his troops and withdrew from Chenzhou, and met with the headquarters of the 37th Army in Caotianpu.

"Are the higher-ups ordering a general retreat?" Li Mingrui asked Wei Yunsong, commander of the 37th Army.

"The overall situation is not good. Commander-in-Chief Li ordered us to retreat in an orderly manner," Wei Yunsong said. "Something went wrong in Changning. Liao Lei failed to capture Dishui Mountain, where a regiment of the Guangdong Communist Party was stationed, and he even lost a tooth. Guangdong Communist Party reinforcements have appeared, so Liao Lei retreated across the board. The most important thing is that a major incident has occurred in Hengyang. More than 10,000 Guangdong Communist Party members are besieging Hengyang, and there are only more than 6,000 soldiers from the 36th Army in the city.

Li Mingrui: "We must hurry back to Hengyang. However, even if we march unimpeded, it will take three or four days to get back to Hengyang. Our army is not safe now. There are Guangdong Communists in the mountains on both sides, so we can't move that fast. Commander, what do you think of retreating through Yongzhou?"

Wei Yunsong: "Commander-in-Chief Li asked us to gather in Leiyang first, and then retreat west to Yongzhou or north to Hengyang depending on the situation. How is the battle at Erdaoling going? Are your blasting engineers effective?"

"Breaking through defenses is effective. We broke through the enemy's barbed wire in our first attack," Li Mingrui said, "but it was all done at the cost of lives. In other words, the previous method cost lives but still couldn't break through.

"I see!" Wei Yunsong sighed, "The Guangdong Communists are picking on our weaknesses to attack us.

"Our Gui army excels at mountain warfare and mobile warfare. In the past, we seemed to be able to fight well in the plains and capture cities, but that was because we were fighting against the Beiyang Army.

"The Guangdong Communists lured us to a pre-determined position north of Chenzhou and engaged us in a high-intensity firepower positional attack and defense, something we're not good at right now. Xia Wei was overconfident and wasted his Second Division. If we hadn't withdrawn quickly today, your Eighth Division would have been lost as well."

Li Mingrui: "Commander, why should we fight the Guangdong Communists to the death?

"The Guangdong Communist Party and we are at war to the death. What else can we do? We have to fight," Wei Yunsong still sighed, "Do you think that Commander-in-Chief Li sent all the main force of the Lao Gui Army into this battle just because of a few words from Chiang Kai-shek?

Li Mingrui: “..

Wei Yunsong: "We didn't defeat the Guangdong Communists in this battle. Let's withdraw and practice again. Mingrui, you and the 8th Division will think about it. Learn from the First Army and continue along the path of explosive engineers. I think there is a way to do it, but we have to withdraw the troops.

"Commander!"

Xu Xiangqian saluted.

During the full-scale counterattack phase, Chenzhou's command center moved forward and Chen Tianheng joined the First Division headquarters.

Chen Tianheng: "Did the 23rd Regiment find a gap in the Gui army?"

Xu Xiangqian: "We have found the commanders of both regiments. Wang Erzhuo launched an attack on the 7th Division of the Guangxi Army. Qiu Qingquan and the 2nd Brigade cut in from the southern edge of the 7th Division's defensive position. This was the battle situation half an hour ago. We will know the combat situation of Qiu Qingquan's troops within the Guangxi Army's defense line later.

Chen Tianheng: "Is this the automatic coordination between the two regiments on the battlefield?

"Yes, according to the pre-war coordination of the First Division, the tactical coordination between the regimental battle groups was completed independently, and the situation can be reported later.

Chen Tianheng: "Now we are just waiting for news from the First Regiment.

The 1st Regiment under Zheng Dongguo launched the attack at 3:00 PM. After two or three days of fighting with the 10th Gui Division in the bamboo forest, the 1st Regiment finally encountered troops stationed at the site of the camp and trenches. They immediately launched an attack, breaking through the 24th Division's position on the 8th Army's side, which in turn led to the 24th Division's total collapse.

The disorderly retreat of the 24th Division was almost like slow motion in front of the 1st Regiment. Soon, the commander and headquarters of the 24th Division ran into the fire range of the 2nd Battalion of the 1st Regiment during the retreat. All of them were captured and the battle entered the mopping-up stage.

At this point, the three divisions of the former Hunan Army, now the 8th Army incorporated into the Guangxi Clique, were either taken away with their combat effectiveness reduced to zero, or were completely wiped out.

However, the news of the complete annihilation of the 24th Division was being delivered to the headquarters by messengers. Because the 1st Regiment was the farthest away, it would take more than an hour for the message to reach Chen Tianheng.

"The 8th Regiment has two hours to reach the battlefield. We must hurry now," Chen Tianheng issued a combat order: "The 2nd Brigade of the 5th Army and the 2th Regiment will immediately launch an offensive against the 1st Division of the Guangxi Autonomous Region and disrupt the retreat order of the 1st and 8th Divisions of the Guangxi Autonomous Region. Peng Dehuai, you will be responsible for coordinating the three regiments participating in the battle."

Peng Dehuai: "Yes. Is there a time limit?"

Chen Tianheng: "No. It's 4 p.m. now. A breakthrough before dark is impossible. You have to consider that if the battle lasts from the afternoon until dark, the final stage of the battle will be a night battle. Maintain coordination among all units and don't let any one battalion advance too far. Has the Second Division's radio been online?"

"Yes. Du Yuming just contacted the headquarters.

Chen Tianheng: "Order the Second Division to quickly advance towards Changning after the siege of Dishuishan is lifted. Changning is the second choice for the Guangxi Clique's retreat."

Dripping Mountain.

The reinforcements of the Second Division came rushing in, almost without stopping, and only reorganized slightly before launching an attack on the enemy forces near Dishui Mountain.

Liao Lei had also deployed scouts around the battlefield, knowing that Guangdong Communist reinforcements were imminent, but he no longer had the fresh troops to organize a defensive line against Du Yuming's attack. A half-crippled regiment of the 9th Guangxi Division tried to hold off the enemy at the front, but was quickly wiped out by Du Yuming. The time gained was only enough for the 9th Guangxi Division headquarters and the remaining two regiments, numbering over 3,000 men, to begin their retreat to Changning.

Another force attacking Dishui Mountain, the 22nd Division of the 8th Army, could not even gather its troops and escape to Changning. The three half-crippled regiments fled all over the mountains under the continuous attacks of the 22nd Division.

Yu Chengwan's Fourth Regiment finally joined forces with the Second Division

"Our regiment suffered over 400 casualties, and now there are 634 of us still able to fight.

Yu Chengwan reported his losses to Du Yuming.

Du Yuming: "Does the 600 or so soldiers who can continue to fight also include those with minor injuries?

Yu Chengwan nodded: "Yes, there are some who were slightly injured but can still shoot, and they are also counted among the more than 600 people.

Du Yuming: "Then let's follow the commander's instructions. You can go down and rest."

After inspecting the battle scene of Dishui Mountain, Du Yuming finally understood why this battle was a turning point in the campaign.

Yu Chengwan's 1100 men suffered over 400 casualties, while the two Guangxi divisions outside Dishui Mountain suffered over 4,000 casualties. Of these 4,000, over 2,000 lay crying in the camp. Liao Lei had asked those who could still run to run with him, leaving the wounded who could not run behind in the camp.

The Guangxi clique's 6-to-1 military advantage was not enough to capture Dishui Mountain, which made the enemy commander realize that the battle could not continue.

The fact that a detachment was firmly pinned down at Dishui Mountain meant that the flank of the battle zone, near Changning, could be broken by the First Army at any time, putting the entire Guangxi Clique's battle group in a passive position. Li Zongren had no choice but to make the decision of a full retreat.

The fighting continued on the night of December 15.

The First and Second Armies fought fiercely and continuously. Unlike other units of Chiang Kai-shek's army, the Guangxi clique troops did not surrender as soon as it got dark and they were attacked from all sides. In particular, the Guangxi children of the old Guangxi clique troops fought desperately in the dark.

"Judging from the enemy's current movements, the location of Xia Wei, the enemy's 7th Army headquarters and the battle center, is very likely here.

The forward command center had no time to find a place to house its staff. Chen Tianheng spread out a map on the floor of an empty horse-drawn carriage and shone his flashlight at the position behind the 7th Gui Division: "The First Regiment has already eliminated the 24th Division, and the Third Regiment has cut off the battlefield. Both regiments can attack this position. Attack immediately. Which of these two regiments has its radio turned on?"

Chen Mingren: "Wang Erzhuo of the Second Regiment turned on his radio; their headquarters was in Rong Village. The First Regiment didn't turn on its radio.

Chen Tianheng: "Send a telegram to Wang Erzhuo, telling the Second Brigade to carry out their original mission and the Second Regiment to move. Have him send a messenger to notify the First Regiment and coordinate the operations. We must eliminate the big fish behind the 7th Guangxi Division before daybreak!"

By the late night, that is, the early morning of December 16, the main battlefield of both sides had shifted from the north of Chenzhou City to Matanxu.

The side-by-side defense lines of the 1st and 8th Gui Divisions were broken in the evening. The two divisions retreated to Matanxu, and then continued to move north from Matanxu and retreated to Leiyang.

The 10th Gui Division, which was maneuvering on the eastern wing of the battlefield, moved north simultaneously with the aim of returning to Leiyang.